Outlander Season 7 episode 3 review: Claire and Jamie are alive (phew!)

Outlander Season 7 episode 3, “Death Be Not Proud,” certainly had many plot points come to light, but it was still a welcome reprieve following the emotional and jam-packed second episode! The main point is that Jamie and Claire make it out of the fire alive, which we knew would happen of course. But still, it’s good to have the reassurance now!

The pacing of the episode was a bit slower, but not in a bad way. We needed to slow down a bit and let the characters recover from what they’ve lost. First, Jamie and Claire had to say goodbye to Bree, Roger, and the kids last episode. And now, they’ve suffered another big loss. Their home and the house that Jamie built himself is sadly gone.

Though when we do say certain goodbyes, new beginnings surface. While our beloved couple is saying farewell to one home, it looks like they’re returning to another. Let’s jump into the review! As a reminder, I am a show-only fan so my thoughts below reflect that.

Outlander Season 7 episode 3 review

Claire and Jamie survive the House Fire (phew!)

As mentioned above, we did know that there’s no way the show was going to kill off the couple we all madly stan. But I’m not going to lie and say I was 100% reassured. The two dramatically run out of the house and make it out just in time before it explodes. So how did it happen?

Well, Wendigo Donner is an idiot and held the match he lit near the ether. And the chemical makes him pass out while of course holding the burning match. As he drops, so does the match right into the ether, and kaboom. Like the other nasties who got what they deserved this season – Richard Brown and Allan Christie – I’m happy to say Wendigo Donner is gone. I know he was just trying to get back to his time, but he was certainly had a selfish way of doing it. Good riddance.

Everyone starts to try and save Jamie and Claire’s beloved home, but the fire spreads too fast and gets too big. No matter how much water they use, it’s not going to put it out. In a heartbreaking moment, we see both Jamie and Claire realize this at the same time. Their efforts are futile and they stop as everyone else arounds them continues to try and put it out. That montage of everything inside the house and going up in flames, as well as the glass breaking broke my heart. And you can read all of that on Jamie and Claire’s faces. It took them so long to find a safe place to settle down, and now that home is gone. These characters really are the strongest people out there in fictional television! After all the hardships they’ve been through, they know all they can do is continue to go on. And they’ll be able to do that together.

Jamie already has another spot picked for them to build their new home, but first he has something important to do. He wants to take Young Ian back to Lallybroch. He made a promise to Jenny that he would bring Ian back home, and he know’s he’ll have to take his nephew back before the American Revolution arrives. Plus, Jamie made a promise to himself that he wouldn’t face his son, William, on the battlefield. Jamie wants to be far, far away from the war when it arrives. And we certainly can’t blame him! I hope this really does mean we’re going back to Scotland. I miss it! But it’s bittersweet as they say goodbye to Fraser’s Ridge (for now at least). Will they really make it back eventually?

Young Ian, Arch Bug, and the Jacobite gold

I knew there was something to the gold that Jamie mentions at the very end of the second episode when Wendigo Donner and his lackeys burst into the Big House. It turns out that Arch Bug and Mrs. Bug have been hiding a part of the lost Jacobite gold that was meant to help during the Jacobite Rising and bring Charles Stuart to victory. But it doesn’t arrive in time and we unfortunately know how that ended. It turns out the gold was taken by Hector Cameron (Jocasta’s husband), Jamie’s uncle Dougal MacKenzie, and Arch Bug as he was a taxman to Malcolm Grant.

Back in season 5 we know that Joscasta’s daughter died as she and Hector fled with the gold after British soldiers stopped their carriage. Arch doesn’t know what Dougal did with his share, but he took it back to Malcolm which the clansman used for the good of the clan. So all of these years later, how did Arch get his hands on the gold if he gave Malcolm his share?

From his perspective, Jocasta and Hector are traitors and “stole” the gold. He believes he has a right to it and so every time Jamie would send him to River Run, Arch would take the gold he found out is in Hector’s crypt little by little. And Mrs. Bug was supporting her husband, believing they deserved it. But when Jamie finds out the full story, he still decides to send the Bugs away.

Before they leave, Young Ian and Jamie watch as who they think is Arch digging up the gold because he didn’t tell Jamie the hiding place. But it turns out to actually be Mrs. Bug who is dressed like her husband in disguise. She shoots at Jamie with a gun, so Ian instinctively reacts and shoots an arrow at her still not knowing it’s actually Mrs. Bug. But the two find out it’s her and that Ian accidentally killed the old woman. Of course he feels extremely guilty and the aftermath of this hints at more to come for Ian’s character.

Arch shows up for his wife’s funeral and asks Claire to sing, and she does as we saw in the trailer. We really need Caitriona Balfe to use her beautiful voice more in the series! Ian tries to apologize to Mr. Bug, but he’ll have none of it. At first he asks Ian if he’ll let him take Rollo to kill, but Ian says of course not. It was his crime, not Rollo’s. Like excuse you Mr. Bug. I understand she’s your wife, but it really was an accident. Stay away from Rollo! The old man isn’t going to let things go though. He tells Young Ian, “When you have something worth taking, you’ll see me again. That, I promise ye.” Ugh, go away Mr. Bug.

If we know anything about this show, Mr. Bug is going to pop up again I’m sure. It will be interesting to see how this effects Ian’s character going forward. I’m sure he’ll be carrying this guilt with him, and the threat of Mr. Bug will hang over him. I don’t mean to sound harsh, but honestly I don’t really care that Mrs. Bug died. Does that make me a bad person?

Roger and Bree find a way to stay connected to Jamie and Claire

We actually started the episode off with Roger and Brianna, with a bit of a time jump in their time. Mandy is doing well and is now healthy. Yay! The MacKenzies are actually in Scotland and staying with Fiona and her husband Ernie. A big chest is delivered to the them with the name “Jeremiah Alexander Ian Fraser MacKenzie.” It turns out Jamie and Claire wrote a bunch of letters to Bree and Roger, hoping they’ll be able to read it some day in their time. And it makes its way to them!

Bree can be rest assured that her parents don’t die in a fire, and her initial mission was a success. She’s able to stop them from dying. As Roger puts it, “you and your bloody matches. You burned the house down.” Lol, Roger! Plus, they changed history. Because Bree created the matches in the 18th century, she caused a different fire than the one that actually was supposed to kill her parents. While we know the time-travelers can’t make big changes in history, they are able to make small ones. And this is one of them! Go Bree! While of course this is great news, it really was heartbreaking to see Jamie and Claire search the rubble and whatever of their belongings is salvageable.

Plus as we see later in the episode, Jamie decides to melt down most of the gold and hide the rest of it. They disguise it as a musket ball, which is in the chest of letters. But Bree and Roger don’t know that’s actually a ball of gold. I’m guessing this will come into play later where they’re going to need it. Plus that whole secret hiding spot that only Jamie and Jemmy know? Hmm.

The biggest and most exciting plot point we end with in this episode with the MacKenzies is the fact that Lallybroch is for sale! Oh my god, are they going to buy it!? They have to, yes! Even though they’re in a different time, it looks like they’ll still be connected to their family in some way. Wohoo!

Bonus shout-outs

• Jamie gifts Claire a new blade, which he says you need to blood so it knows its purpose. Both of them so so, and then put their thumbs together. “Blood of my blood.” Always love this callback!
• Jamie is having doubts following their loss, but Claire reassures him, “you will always be enough.” These two are just adorable. I can’t.
• Roger and Bree aren’t the only ones connected to the Frasers. Jamie continues to have dreams about the couple and their kids. What is this new, magical power that Jamie has?
• Young Ian really is too smart for his own good. He figured out that William is Jamie’s son. Thankfully, the portrait of a young Willie did not burn in the fire and Jamie can continue to hold it close.
• When Claire let Adso go. The waterworks, you guys.

Outlander Season 7 premieres new episodes Fridays on Starz.